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LA becomes largest US city to ban single-use plastic bags

Withstanding a strong lobby from the plastic bag industry, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a ban on single-use plastic bags at checkout counters as well as a 10-cent fee on paper bags.

With a population of 4 million — and using an estimated 2.7 billion plastic bags each year — Los Angeles becomes the largest city in the U.S. to enact a ban and joins 47 other cities in California alone.

“This is a tipping point” for banning plastic bags around the world, City Councilman Paul Koretz, a ban sponsor, declared just before the 13-1 vote.

The industry counters that the ban will be bad for the environment and health and will cost local jobs.